Its starting out as a very bad year for Big Coal, and its likely to get worse.
Norway's national sovereign wealth fund (world's largest) says NO to Coal and Tar Sands investments
Bills in Washington State Seek to End Use of Coal
SEATTLE — Lawmakers hoping to wean Washington State off coal power are trying to ease the way for the state’s utilities to end the electricity they get from coal.
Bills in the House and Senate would set favorable conditions for three private utilities if they decided to shut down a large coal-fired power plant in eastern Montana that provides power to a chunk of the Pacific Northwest.
Supporters say the proposal gives the utilities the tools to begin divesting from coal power plants, including a way to issue bonds for a shutdown.
But the Sierra Club and other critics say the proposal removes too much utility oversight, sets too long a timeline for closing a power plant and does not ensure that coal power would be replaced by something cleaner.
“It’s important that we start the discussion about how to divest ourselves of energy supply from coal,” said Representative Jeff Morris, a Democrat who is the prime sponsor of the legislation.
Much of the state’s coal-fired electricity comes in from the Colstrip Steam Electric Station in Colstrip, Mont., and the Jim Bridger plant in Wyoming.
To reduce carbon pollution, Gov. Jay Inslee and others are trying to persuade three investor-owned utilities operating in the state — Puget Sound Energy, PacifiCorp and Avista — to reduce or eliminate electricity they get from out-of-state coal plants.
Washington's mountains combined with its ample precipitation have made hydropower the most cost effective way most of Washington's power is generated. Declining snowpacks driven by Global Warming will reduce the power produced by the existing hydro dams, especially during the summer.
Moments like this make me very proud to be a 5thn generation Washingtonian.